Capripoxviruses represent a genus of the poxviridae family under the subfamily chordopoxviriniae; the genus includes three animal virus species that have a devastating impact on sheep, goats, and cattle in Africa, Asia, and most recently Eastern Europe (1-4). The viruses in the genus are sheeppox virus (SPPV), goatpox virus (GTPV), and lumpy skin disease virus (LSDV) which affect sheep, goats, and cattle, respectively (1, 4). Capripoxviruses share 98% sequence similarity between